It takes a lot of courage to start your own business.

Taking an idea from concept to reality, and dealing with everything from finding a location for the business, keeping up with inventory, learning about distribution and making payroll can test the mettle of the most-confident entrepreneur.

Now, consider doing all of that in a nascent industry that is dealing with all kinds of new governmental regulations, trying to shed a public stigma and is, well, known for the aroma of a certain type of plant.

If you can do that, you might have an idea of what business is like for John Oram, president and chief executive of NUG, an Oakland-based vertically integrated cannabis company located in 200,000 square feet of factory space in East Oakland.

“The industry is trying to normalize itself,” Oram said during a recent interview at NUG’s headquarters. “Our No. 1 tagline at NUG is to normalize the cannabis experience. So, with everything we do, we think about how can we make that experience, this product normal.”

In addition to showing what a room with 9,000-square-feet of marijuana plants looks like, Oram spoke about the changes in California’s cannabis industry, how taxes and regulations are affecting industry growth and what kind of advice he would give to someone looking to get into the cannabis market today.

To read more of John Oram’s comments, click here.